Editorials, Opinion We may be getting a little bit personal with this month’s Cheers & Jeers column, but it’s nice to celebrate journalism wins, especially in the face of a White House administration that cries “fake news” every time members of the media do their job and report news that challenges government officials in any way. In this case, our first August “Cheers” goes to one of our own, Post-Record’s sports reporter, Dan Trujillo, who has won an award from the Washington Newspaper Publishers’ Association for his photography and/or news writing skills. We’re not sure what Dan won yet, or which story or photo clinched the award for him, but we’ll find out in October at the WNPA’s annual gathering of this state’s best publishers, editors and journalists. Despite having to work weekends and late nights — especially during the fall and spring seasons when these local teams can’t seem to stop winning championships — Dan always meets his assignments and deadlines with a cheerful attitude and a grin. Congratulations on your win, Dan, you deserve it!
With that said, let’s move on to our August Jeer. This one goes out to all of the folks who kept telling Trump detractors to simmer down last November, to just get over the loss and give our newly elected president a chance. Now Trump is unraveling and those same people who penned editorials insisting we “respect the office” are nowhere to be found.
Where is the outrage over the president’s behavior at a recent Boy Scout rally, where he started to retell a lewd story, and then urged those children to boo his predecessor? Where are these voices urging respect when the president’s pick for a communications director goes on an offensive, not-fit-for-print rant during his first week on the job? What did you think when our president urged the nation’s police officers to physically injure presumed-innocent suspects? How about when news broke this week that the administration was involved in creating an actual fake news story at Fox? Or when Trump dissed the White House as “a dump”? You were so vocal before. Where are you now? Why aren’t you offering solutions now that it’s clear your “wait and see” approach didn’t pan out? We need voices from Democrats, Republicans and Independents right now. We need to call these people out for their outrageous and extremely disrespectful attitude toward the American people. We need you to admit that you were wrong. And we need you to start respecting the highest office in the land.
We have two more Cheers left. One goes to local city leaders in Camas and Washougal who had the decency to think about those less fortunate during this week’s extreme heat wave. Keeping public spaces like the library open longer to act as a free cooling center for people who are vulnerable to the heat is a kind and generous thing to do. Cheers to that.
City leaders in Camas get another Cheers, this time for having the foresight to install an electric vehicle charging station near the library a few years ago. With Volvo recently announcing that it will soon halt production of gas-powered vehicles and a new climate change report that shows switching from a gas or diesel car to an electric vehicle is one of the best things an individual can do to reduce their carbon footprint and help slow the devastation of climate change, the city’s move is a leap in the right direction.
